Home / Population growth / Japan
Japan — Population growth
Population Growth (Annual %) for Japan, 1961–2025.
Latest value · 2025
-0.49%
Population Growth (Annual %) · annual % · -154.9% since 1961
Population growth for Japan was -0.49% in 2025, according to the latest World Bank data. The series covers 65 years, from 1961 to 2025. The highest recorded value was 2.19% in 1971.
Japan ranks 197 of 217 economies on this measure (1 = highest), putting it in the top 91%. The median for East Asia & Pacific is 0.64%, so Japan sits below it. It peaked in 1971 and has fallen 122% since. Over the last decade (2015–2025) the figure moved down 364%.
Key figures
Latest (2025)
-0.49%
First (1961)
0.90%
Change
-154.9%
Highest
2.19%
in 1971
Lowest
-0.49%
in 2025
Average
0.43%
Annual growth (CAGR)
—
Years of data
65
Recent years
| Year | annual % |
|---|---|
| 2025 | -0.49% |
| 2024 | -0.44% |
| 2023 | -0.49% |
| 2022 | -0.44% |
| 2021 | -0.46% |
| 2020 | -0.29% |
| 2019 | -0.14% |
| 2018 | -0.13% |
| 2017 | -0.08% |
| 2016 | -0.05% |
| 2015 | -0.11% |
| 2014 | -0.13% |
Reading this correctly. Annual population growth rate. A negative value means the population shrank, usually through emigration or low birth rates. Figures are in annual %. Comparing this series with a different measure of the same concept (for example a nominal figure against a purchasing-power-parity figure) will give misleading results.
Related data
Source. World Bank Open Data, indicator
SP.POP.GROW — Population Growth (Annual %). Data licensed under CC BY 4.0. Values are reproduced as published; this page computes the summary statistics (change, CAGR, extremes) from the underlying annual series. View the original dataset on data.worldbank.org.